Read and Comment

You, That Were … Enemies.

“And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him” – Colossians 1:21-22

There is one word in particular that Paul frequently uses in his Epistles to sum up the accomplishment of the cross. That word is “reconciliation,” the bringing together of two parties that were previously at odds.

Here in Colossians, Paul describes in great detail why this reconciliation was necessary. First, you (and every other human being) were alienated from God, pitted against Him both in your mind and in your actions. How so? Because, by virtue of simply being born, we are sinners.

There is not a single person in the world who is by nature at peace with God. Paul makes it very clear in Romans 3 that there is none righteous, there is none who seeks God, there is none good … no, not one.

And for this reason, we are unacceptable in God’s sight. He is good and we are wicked (Jeremiah 17:9). He is just and we are unjust. He is right and we are wrong. But Jesus, Paul says, has reconciled us through His death on Calvary’s cross!

We are no longer guilty, if we are Christ’s. Because He sees us in Christ, God now views us as holy, blameless, and above reproach!

And the clear implication is that, for those who are now in Christ, they have been reconciled to God in their minds and in their actions. No longer do they willingly rebel against Him; they now seek to serve Him for His glory alone!

So what about you? Are you in Christ? Have you been reconciled to God?